'Thinking'

"Speaking"

"[Intercomms/Radio Transmission]"

*noises*

======

Sector 27 - Southern Area Outskirts
1140 Hours

"This is boring..." Was the words that came out of (Y/n)'s mouth as he lets out a sigh.

A couple of hours had already passed since their landing in this sector, and according to Liv, they were already nearing the outskirts. He was completely bored, and was quite jealous that the Constructs behind him didn't feel bored at all.

Deciding to grab some chow since he was hungry, he grabbed the MRE bar from his pocket and unwrapped it before taking a bite, savoring the taste. After finishing, he drank some water and pondered what he needs to do next.

Vera already did the job that was supposed to be theirs, leaving them having nothing to do except wait, which then again, Constructs have no problem with except for him. He knows he needs to be patient, but he didn't belong to some recon squad like the Strike Hawk who waits for some shit to happen.

"Commandant." Lucia breaks the silence. "Is there something the matter?"

"No, don't worry. I'm just bored." (Y/n) answers. "Waiting for too long is just a pain in the ass for me."

"Are you really that eager to see some action?" Lee asks, a bit interested in his persona.

"You could say that..." (Y/n) remarked. "I'm not really a fan of recon missions. Not my style."

"...I see." Lee muttered.

After a few agonizing minutes of walking, the Gray Ravens finally got close to the signal source, which Lucia confirms. At this point, the signal of the Iso-Devices were getting stronger by the second.

"Hold it..." (Y/n) said.

"What's wrong, Commandant?" Liv queried.

"It's quiet." Lee immediately knew what his commander meant.

Lee was right. It was indeed quiet. Too quiet. There was no signs of Corrupted anywhere in their vicinity, and Cerberus was nowhere to be found either. The said squad would be already guns blazing right now, but no.

"The signal shows Cerberus is still on the move, and did not approach this location." Liv spoke.

"We got ahead of them...?" Lucia was confused. If they did got ahead of Cerberus, then they already have encountered the Iron Maiden by now.

"Fuck." (Y/n) cursed, realizing what was going on. "She misdirected us. Damn redhead... Now we have to go back again."

"Commamdant, this Inver-Device... Tifa took it off herself. It was broadcasting connection requests for M.I.N.D. Beacons before it was taken off, so it been like this the whole time." Liv elaborated.

(Y/n) nods in understanding. "Good thing we didn't connect to the connection request earlier, then."

"But what could possibly make a Construct take off their Inver-Devices in a place full of virus?" Liv pondered. "Commandant, I have a bad feeling about this..."

"So am I." (Y/n) said.

"Urgh..." A low, familiar growl of a Corrupted catched the attention of the squad.

(Y/n) and the others turned their heads to where the growl came from, and saw two Corrupted Constructs slowly walking towards them. However, none of them raised their weapons despite their sudden appearance.

"Two Constructs... Corrupted..." Lucia mumbled, feeling a surge of sadness upon seeing their pitiful state.

Liv conducted a quick scan. "Commandant, these Constructs are from the Suzaku Squad..."

(Y/n) raised his rifle and shot the Corrupted in their heads. Lucia, Lee, and Liv watched as the Corrupted Constructs fell to the ground with a soft thud, their lives ended in a flash. Liv felt sad for the two, but she knew she couldn't do anything for them.

*beep*

*beep*

*beep*

Vera's hologram appeared once again. "[Hey there, congratulations.]"

"You owe us an explanation, Vera." (Y/n) growled at the redhead Construct. "Weren't you trying to take down the Iron Maiden?"

"[Little Tifa is right by our side, dear.]" Vera smirked, infuriating (Y/n). "[I never said anything about her being around that signal.]"

(Y/n) glared at her. "Damn you... Look what you've done! Our mission was slowed because of you!"

"[Let me correct you, my dear. This is OUR mission.]" Vera emphasized. "[We had to secure our little treat, you know? You all have yourselves to blame. We wouldn't have had to play this little trick if you weren't so efficient on your mission.]"

"Impending the mission like this... How are you going to explain this to President Hassen?" Lee added.

"[Compared to the competition in Kurono, this is nothing. You know full well, don't you, Lee?]"

"..."

Vera huffed. "[Alright, you can continue dawdling around. We're digging in.]"

*disconnected*

"If her squad could've handled it on their own, then there wouldn't be so many squads sent to track the Iron Maiden." Lee remarked. "Those hybrid hyenas..."

"That redhead is too overconfident in her abilities." (Y/n) said. "Lee, Liv, gather what you can on the dead Corrupted. We'll catch up to them as you finish."

"Roger." The mentioned Constructs replied simultaneously.

======

Sector 27 - Central Area
1326 Hours

Distant explosions could be heard by the Gray Ravens who have now arrived at the central area of Sector 27. Surprisingly enough, (Y/n) did not show any signs of fatigue despite being a human.

As they continued their advance, the explosions were gradually getting louder and louder. The Gray Raven had expected that it was the Cerberus and Tifa engaging in combat, that's why they need to hurry up.

Liv saw something - or rather, someone in the distance. "There's an ally Construct up ahead! But, why didn't he send a distress signal to nearby squads?"

"No time to think about it now! We have to help him!" (Y/n) exclaimed.

The Construct Liv mentioned was battered, yet he still have some fight left in him and fended off the Corrupted that was surrounding him. However, he looked like he would collapse at any moment because of the amout of damage he recieved. It was quite surprising that he still lived through sheer will alone.

"Liv, secure him! Lucia, Lee, cover her!" (Y/n) ordered.

"Understood." They replied at the same time.

Taking the initiative, (Y/n) prepared himself for close quarters combat. They soon got near the Construct and helped him take out the Corrupted.

(Y/n) rolled to the side, barely dodging a saw from a Corrupted Gardener. He retaliated with three shots towards its chest, disabling it permanently. Two other Corrupted Gardener rushed forward, but was taken out by Lee before they could land a blow on him.

Lucia effeciently yet gracefully wove through the other Corrupted, slicing their heads with deadly precision. Dodging another attack, she jumped in the air and brought her sword down with such force, swiftly cutting the corrupted in half.

Meanwhile, Liv had managed to slip from the furball as she moved the Construct away from the battle and placed him down near the Iso-Device, which had been conveniently placed here.

She began on analyzing the systems of the Construct, and found out that his M.I.N.D. is already corrupted with the virus. She immediately began doing emergency repairs on the said Construct, hoping that it will be enough to keep him alive.

(Y/n) kicked a Corrupted on the chest, causing it to fall on its back. Before it could get back up, Lucia finished it with a stab on the chest. After confirming that the area is clear, they immediately went after Liv to assist her.

(Y/n) kneeled down beside the Construct and winced upon see the Construct's state. As much he wants to use his abilities to the poor guy, his  ability is limited to only heal slashes and stab wounds, and not something like this.

(Y/n) looked at Liv. "How is he?"

"I'm currently doing emergency repairs on him, Commandant." Liv replied. "His body structure is compromised all over..."

"Can you talk?" (Y/n) asked the Construct.

"Ti...fa... Ti...fa..." Was all the Construct managed to sputter out.

'Is he from the Suzaku Squad? What the hell happened to the others?' (Y/n) pondered, having a bad feeling looming over him.

"...After stabilizing him, let's leave him near the Iso-Device." Lucia suggested. "If he cannot recall his consciousness, then let's hope that he can at least make it until the Purifying Force arrives."

"Hopefully." Lee said.

"I'm sorry, but we cannot stay with you." (Y/n) said to the Construct. "Do not leave the Iso-Device field."

Distant growls and grunts once again resounded in the area, catching their attention. Another horde of corrupted was approaching them, and they were in even larger numbers than before. They all prepared for battle as the horde got near.

"Wait..." Lee spoke, looking at the Corrupted with unease. "Those Corrupted... they're acting wierdly..."

"What do you mean?" (Y/n) inquired.

"There are... strange devices inside the Corrupted..." Liv added.

"Those are... the core modules inside the Iso-Devices." Lee explained.

"So, you mean, they gained new abilities by corrupting the Iso-Devices?" Lucia questioned.

"Possibly." (Y/n) confirms.

"This is concerning. HQ didn't mention any of this." Lee thought aloud. "So that's why the Iso-Devices were sealed off before we arrived."

(Y/n) raises his rifle and fired, but the bullet simply bounced off from the Corrupted he shot, much to the surprise of the group. He fired two more, but the Corrupted simply staggered and showed no signs of slowing down.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" (Y/n) muttered in annoyance.

*beep*

*beep*

*beep*

"[Hi, hi, Gray Ravens!]" Vera greeted in her usual smug tone.

(Y/n) grumbled. "What now, Vera? Called to mock us again? If that's the case, then I humbly ask you to fuck off. We're busy cleaning after your mess."

"[How rude. I'm just here to give you a tip.]" Vera stated. "[There are several... 'tricky folks' headed your way.]"

Lee rolled his eyes. "Thank you so much. What a timely reminder. Those 'tricky folks' are already headed our way."

"[So you don't need a little tip, then?]"

"..."

"[Thought so.]" Vera said. "[Their shields can be neutralized by Iso-Devices. If you want to destroy them, you need to do it within the Iso-Device fields.]"

"Stop the act." (Y/n) interjected. "I know you left them for us intentionally."

"[Oh my... You caught me.]" Vera giggled.

"It was fairly obvious, redhead." (Y/n) shot back. "What are we to you? Janitors?"

Vera shrugged. "[Dealing with these things will slow us down tremendously, so... Give your best. I'll be seeing you~!]"

*disconnected*

(Y/n) growled. "Bitch..."

"Commandant, what do we do?" Lucia finally spoke.

(Y/n) pondered for a moment, until an idea came inside his head. He took out an EMP grenade from his rig and pressed the button on the top before throwing it to the horde.

*boom*

The grenade exploded seconds later, sending off high voltages of elecricity. The Corrupted stopped on advancing and froze on where they were standing at, fruitlessly struggling to move their bodies.

(Y/n) smriked. "Checkmate."

"How did you know it will work?" Lucia queried.

"Improvise. Adapt. Overcome." (Y/n) simply said. "Take 'em out."

As ordered, Lucia sliced the heads of each Corrupted with quick succession. The Corrupted fell one by one, until there's nothing left except for them.

(Y/n) nods, satisfied with Lucia's work. "Alright, let's move. Search the area."

======

Sector 27 - Northern Area
1445 Hours

After finding no signs of Tifa nor the Cerberus Squad, the Gray Ravens continued their journey to the north, where the Cerberus' signal was last detected.

While walking, the came across a Construct with spikes impaled on its head and torso. It was battered so badly that they could hardly identify the Construct's face.

(Y/n) went over to investigate, while Lee, Lucia, and Liv took on defensive positions. He kneeled down in front of the said Construct and analyzed the spikes.

The spikes were shiny and were black in color, and its edges were smooth. It was just like the description Hassen said. They finally got a lead to the Iron Maiden.

"Commandant, according to the locational data from Babylonia... Tifa is approaching our position!" Liv alerted the group.

Almost immediately, (Y/n) stepped away from the dead construct and took cover, while the rest of the Gray Raven hid behind covers as well.

"Commandant, your orders!" Lucia exclaimed.

"Ah, please wait!" Liv cut in before (Y/n) could speak. "There... are other Corrupted signals as well!"

"More? I thought we got rid of them along the way..." Lee said, getting more annoyed and worried upon the Corrupted's appearance.

"Tifa..." The Construct they saved earlier suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"Hey! I told you to stay near the Inver-Device!" (Y/n) shouted at him.

"The virus had already infected his M.I.N.D. That's why he's showing up as a Corrupted in the radar." Liv said.

"Shall we?" Lee raised his weapons.

"Tifa..." The Construct mumbled again.

Liv grabbed Lee's arm. "Please wait! He's still maintaining a part of himself... all through sheer force of will..."

"Please... heal me... I can still fight..." The Construct begged, though his condition says otherwise.

"If you go on like this, you'll-" Lucia protested, but the Construct cut her off.

"I don't care... I have to... I have to bring Tifa back and cleanse her..." The Construct said in desperation.

"Cleanse... I'm sorry, but that's not possible." (Y/n) argued. 'Looks like he's about to lose it. He's seeing hallucinations as well...'

"Tifa was injected with a foreign power by an enemy..." The Construct continued.

"Ascendants?" (Y/n) asked.

"If that's what you call them..." The Construct confirmed.

'Knew it.' (Y/n) thought.

"That power allowed Constructs to keep their consciousness stable even under viral influence..." The Construct explained. "However...  it came with a price. She paid it with her humanity... She's now a slave to the virus..."

"What about your Commander? What's his status?" (Y/n) inquired.

"K.I.A." The Construct replied, his voice filled with regret and anger.

(Y/n) turned to Liv. "Liv, where's the Iron Maiden?"

"Tracking." Liv replied. After a few moments, she continued. "She's still approaching us, though she had slowed down for the past ten minutes."

"Is she trying to bait us?" Lucia said.

"That's a possibility." (Y/n) agreed.

"Tifa has lost her humanity... But if she connects to an Inver-Device... Her M.I.N.D. might... recover..." The Construct went on. "Wait for me Tifa... I'll bring you... back to Babylonia..."

"No. At this point, there's nothing we can do." (Y/n) denied his statement, much to the Construct's shock.

"What do you-" The Construct tried to counter but was cut off.

"You said it yourself. You said that she MIGHT recover, but in reality, there's no hope for her." (Y/n) retorted, making sure that every word is being fed into the Construct's head.

"Commandant..." Liv frowned.

"Whatever or whoever the fuck gave her that power is someone far more dangerous. If someone knew how to bring her back, it's that 'enemy' you're talking about." (Y/n) elaborated in frustration. "But, I doubt that he or she or whatever that enemy is, will never, ever bring her back, nor that Tifa will want to."

(Y/n) of course felt bad about crusing his hopes on bringing Tifa back, but he needs to set his eyes on the reality. Lucia, Lee, and Liv knew that it was the harsh reality the Construct needs to face, and there's nothing they can do about it.

The Construct turned around and walked away, staggering with each step. (Y/n) shook his head at the sight of the Construct's current state.

"We cannot allow him to go by himself." Lucia declared.

(Y/n) sighed. "Liv, gather nearby teams. We'll take down the Iron Maiden once and for all."

"Got it. I've sent our coordinates to the nearby teams." Liv did as ordered.

"Lucia, you know that he can't be saved, right?" Lee stated. "Whether we help him or not, it won't change the result."

Lucia frowned. "Even so..."

"We need to at least help him until his end. It's the only thing we can do for him." (Y/n) finished for her. "Liv, where's the Iron Maiden located?"

"Give me a second, Commandant." Liv said. After a while, she found the location of the Iron Maiden. "She's at a subway station, Commandant. She hadn't moved from there for a while, and its her current location."

"Hiding from radar, eh?" (Y/n) huffed. "She wants to play? Then we'll play."

======

Sector 27 - Northern Area
Subway Station
1630 Hours

After arriving at the subway station, the squad prepared for combat. By this point, the sky was starting to go dark as the sun begins to set, prompting them to hurry up.

The subway station itself had a lot of collapsed parts, cracks, and was covered by vegetation. Well, it was abandoned by humans after all, leaving the nature to her own devices.

The Construct, surprisingly, still managed to go through the whole trip. However, they knew that he's going to succumb to both his injuries and to the virus sooner or later.

Suddenly, the Construct grunted and fell on its knees, alerting the Gray Ravens. Liv immediately tended to him and did a full scan, while (Y/n), Lucia, and Lee formed a defensive perimeter around them.

"Commandant, his viral levels are rising rapidly!" Liv exclaimed.

"Commandant, there's a signal coming at us!" Lucia alarmed the group. "It's the Iron Maiden!"

"Liv, take the Construct to a secure place! We'll cover you!" (Y/n) acted quickly.

Liv did so and moved the Construct to a nearby rubble. Lucia, (Y/n), and Lee scanned their surroundings, waiting for the Iron Maiden to appear.

"AHAHAHAHAHAHA~!!" A maniacal laugh came from the shadows.

Moments later, the Iron Maiden had emerged from the darkness, revealing itself fully to the Gray Ravens. Its red eyes glowed brightly, looking down directly at them.

The three looked onto it, until their gaze landed on a Construct that was impaled on one of her spikes. The said Construct did not show any signs of life, neither he will be.

The Construct was then then thrown to the side like a trash. It lets off a dull thud as it hits the ground, causing a dust cloud to rise.

"That's... a Cerberus member?" Lee mumbled.

(Y/n) quickly contacted Vera using his watch through audio communication. After a few moments, she finally answered. "Hey, Vera! What's the situation on your end?! We just saw a corpse of your squad! What happened?!"

Vera coughed a few times, and was seemingly struggling to breath. "[We... almost had her... But she had something up on her sleeve... Dammit...]"

"Where the fuck are you?" (Y/n) asked, still aiming his rifle at the Iron Maiden as well. Lee was the same, aiming his pistols, while Lucia got into a fighting stance and was ready to pounce at the enemy.

"[That's... none of... your concern...]" Vera coughed again, albeit more louder and harder this time. "[I'll give you one last piece of advice. This 'maiden' before you isn't a sound mind. Beware...]"

"...Aren't you worried about your squad member?" (Y/n) asked the redhead Construct.

"[Just a dead piece of trash. Nothing but himself to blame.]" Vera replied, the way (Y/n) expected to. "[Argh...! Alright... I need a break...]"

*disconnected*

"She had it coming." (Y/n) remarked. "Their recklessness backfired."

"Overconfidence is a vice." The 'Iron Maiden', Tifa, spoke. "Humanity will never defeat the Punishint Virus. How much more pain do you need to understand this plain simple fact?"

"As long as we can still move, as long as we have the strength to do so, we will not stop until we retake the world." (Y/n) argued.

"It was you humans who caused this." Tifa retorted. "Because of your naivety, this hell was unleashed upon us... And cost me my... most precious... Commandant..."

"Do you think you're the only one who suffered?" (Y/n) shot back, his grip on the rifle getting tighter. "You're not the only one who've seen someone die, begging to be saved by someone. Do you really think that you're the only one who experienced pain?"

"..."

"Speak up!"

"...That's because you're nothing compared to him. He was special." Tifa blankly said. "Now, I have the Ascension-Network on my side. And with this power, I will fullfill the last wish of my Commandant..."

(Y/n) switched the firing mode to full auto, his finger already on the trigger. "Gray Raven, engage!"